DENR MEO NORTH RETRIEVES RETICULATED PYTHONS IN MALABON AND NAVOTAS

The Metropolitan Environmental Office-North (MEO-North) retrieved one reticulated python (Malayopython reticulatus) each in Malabon and Navotas City early last week.

The presence of the snakes was first reported by officials of Barangay Tonsuya, Malabon City, and Barangay Navotas North Bay Boulevard-South (NBBS) to the MEO-North and asked assistance their retrieval.

The snakes were immediately taken to the Wildlife Rescue Center at the Ninoy Aquino Parks and Wildlife Center in Quezon City for temporary custody and care pursuant to Secs. 28 and 32 of Republic Act No. 9147 or the “Wildlife Resources Conservation and Protection Act of 2001”.

Reticulated pythons are native to the rainforests of Southeast Asia, including the Philippines.

It is currently listed as a species of “Least Concern” under the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) because of its wide distribution. DENR Administrative Order No. 2019-09, however, lists reticulated pythons under the category of “Other Threatened Species” in the Philippines because of their dwindling population in the wild.